MOSCOW, November 3 (RAPSI, Lyudmila Klenko) – Moscow's Basmanny District Court ordered the seizure of assets owned by Pavel Ivlev, an ex-Yukos official now living in the United States, who was charged with embezzlement and money laundering, Yunona Tsareva, a court spokesperson, told RAPSI on Thursday.

“On November 1, the Moscow Basmanny Court ruled to arrest Ivlev’s property,” Tsareva said, adding that the property comprised the defendant’s share in a Moscow apartment.

Ivlev's case is a part of the YUKOS affair.

According to investigators, the ex-lawyer was a member of an organized crime group led by ex-Yukos head Mikhail Khodorkovsky, which could embezzle more than 195 million metric tons of oil belonging to Yuganskneftegaz, Samaraneftegaz and Tomskneft companies. By estimates, the total worth of the embezzled assets makes 925 billion rubles (over $14 billion).

The Moscow Basmanny District Court issued an arrest warrant for Ivlev in absentia in 2006, and he has been on the international wanted list ever since.